South-South Cooperation - Partners In Population And Development

Chapter 1. Overview of South-South Cooperation
A growing body of evidence suggests that learning and cooperation among developing
nations is increasing in both frequency and complexity. The evidence suggests that their
cooperation is expanding to include not only economic cooperation but now
encompasses health, education, communication, research, and development. Brought
together by shared backgrounds and common challenges, people in developing nations
are banding together as peers to find new and innovative solutions to development
issues. Reviews of technical cooperation suggest that South-South learning from
sharing is often more effective in developing capacity than one-way knowledge transfers
from the North. This brief identifies trends in this phenomenon and highlights some
successful cases of South-South learning and cooperation.
1. Defining South-South Cooperation (SSC)
An internationally accepted definition of South-South Cooperation is yet to be formulated. The
United Nations Population Fund (UNFPA) has defined South-South Cooperation in the context
of achieving the goals set at the ICPD and the millennium development goals (MDGs). UNFPA
defines South-South Cooperation in its Policy and Procedure Manual as “ a means of
development by an exchange of knowledge, experience, technology and information and capacity
development between and among developing countries through governments, civil society
organizations, academic institutions, national institutions and networks to accelerate the
implementation of the ICPD agenda and achievement of MDGs in participating countries”.
Other organizations and individuals in the field have defined SSC in varied ways and these are
listed below. These are meant to provide a broad perspective on the concept.
1.1 Commonly Used Concepts/Definitions of South-South Cooperation

South-South Cooperation has been loosely defined as an exchange of expertise between
governments, organizations and individuals in developing nations. Through this model,
the developing countries help and support each other with knowledge, technical
assistance, and/or investments.

South-South Cooperation means countries of the South helping each other by sharing
technical or economic knowledge and skills to facilitate development.
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
South-South Cooperation is a broader concept covering a very wide range of
collaboration among developing countries, and is generally regarded as having three
dimensions: political, economic and technical.

South-South Cooperation aims to promote self-sufficiency among southern nations and to
strengthen economic ties among states whose market power is more equally matched.

South-South Cooperation is about developing countries working together to find
solutions to common development challenges. Linked by commonalities of history,
geography, and challenges, the countries of the South have important lessons to share,
including many success stories from which other developing countries can learn.

The United Nations Development Program (UNDP), which is actively promoting SouthSouth Cooperation, defines the term as "a means of promoting effective development by
learning and sharing best practices and technology among developing countries."

Japan’s International Cooperation Agency’s (JICA) Task Force on South-South
Cooperation has used the UNDP definition as a base from which to construct its own
definition: "Mutual cooperation aimed at fostering self-sustaining development, involving
deepening relations among developing countries while conducting technical and
economic cooperation."

"South-South
Cooperation
is
a
conscious,
systematic
and
politically
motivated system, developed with the aim of creating a structure of multiple links
between developing countries" (SEGIB, 2009).

South-South Cooperation inherently means southern countries taking ownership of
development and leading technical cooperation, a goal which is espoused by development
agencies around the world.
It promotes the transfer of practical experience among
contexts that, while certainly differing, often share characteristics and constraints.
Southern solutions to development problems can often be better adapted to local
conditions than northern-inspired solutions. (Rosseel et al. 2009: 18; Fordelone 2009: 7)
Perhaps most appealing to some is that, South-South Cooperation - “lacks the overtones
of cultural, political, and economic hegemony that is sometimes associated with
traditional North-South aid.” (Rosseel et al. 2009: 19)

South-South Cooperation refers to cooperative activities between newly industrialized
southern countries and other, lesser-developed nations of the southern hemisphere. Such
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activities include developing mutually beneficial technologies, services, and trading
relationships. South-South Cooperation aims to promote self-sufficiency among southern
nations and to strengthen economic ties among states whose market power is more
equally matched than in asymmetric North-South relationships.

South-South Cooperation means closer technical and economic cooperation among
developing countries by employing experts from the South, sharing best practices from
the South, and helping to develop a sense of ownership of the development process in the
South. It also allows developing countries to diversify and expand their development
options and economic links and is a powerful tool for building new partnerships, creating
more democratic and equitable forms of global interdependence and global governance.

As stated in the Accra Agenda for Action (2008) article 19d), “South‐South cooperation
on development aims to observe the principle of non‐interference in internal affairs,
equality among developing partners and respect for their independence, national
sovereignty, cultural diversity and identity and local content” provides a good conceptual,
operational and practice definition that could be adopted, expanded and developed into a
policy and framework of engagement.

In the Nairobi Outcome (2009), participants in the UN’s high-level conference on SouthSouth Cooperation reaffirmed that South-South Cooperation differed from official
development assistance (ODA) as “a partnership among equals, based on solidarity”, and
must be guided by the principles of respect for national sovereignty and ownership, free
of any conditionality.
1.2.
Partners in Population and Development’s (PPD) Definition of South-South
Cooperation
PPD was established in 1994 to promote and strengthen South-South Cooperation in population
and development. Since its establishment, PPD has been implementing reproductive health,
population and development programs in its member states through South-South Cooperation
with resounding success. PPD defines South-South Cooperation as “an international
cooperation strategy that aims at empowering developing countries to uplift the quality of life
of their citizens in mutual respect and in recognition of the specificity and comparative
advantage of each country in their ability to influence the development agenda.”
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2. Difference between South-South Cooperation and Triangular Cooperation
Triangular Cooperation is the result of technical cooperation among two or more developing
countries that is supported financially by northern donors or by international organizations.
Triangular Cooperation often consists of a financial contribution from a northern donor together
with technical skills provided by a southern donor, which is then implemented in a partner
country. South-South Cooperation often consists of technical assistance on a project level, and at
times it is implemented in the form of cost-sharing schemes. South-South Cooperation is not
limited to “aid” as classified by the Development Assistance Committee (DAC), since it includes
other types of financial flows and technical cooperation.
2.1 Technical Cooperation among Developing Countries (TCDC)
Technical cooperation among developing countries - known as TCDC - is essentially a process
whereby two or more developing countries pursue their individual or collective development
through cooperative exchanges of knowledge, skills, resources and technical know-how. Ideally,
TCDC activities should be initiated, organized and managed by developing countries themselves
with their governments playing a lead role while involving public and private institutions, nongovernmental organizations and individuals.
TCDC is often cross-sectoral and can be bilateral, multilateral, sub regional, regional or
interregional in character. The ultimate goal of TCDC is to promote national and collective selfreliance among developing countries while also encouraging global interdependence.
3. Distinctive Features of SSC within the Aid Effectiveness Agenda
Within the aid effectiveness agenda, the following distinctive features of SSC can be
highlighted:

Capacity development: South-South technical cooperation tends to strongly focus on
capacity development as a process as opposed to a “product”; technical cooperation is
embedded as a tool for mutual learning.

A broader choice of support, leading to horizontal partnerships: South-South
technical cooperation offers a different type of relationship and might improve the
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diversity of choices for technical cooperation at the country and regional level, while also
creating more horizontal forms of development partnerships.

Cost effectiveness: Drawing on regional and national resources, South-South technical
cooperation delivers superior value for money.

Demand-driven character: Given the scarce resources and the horizontal relations
between the partners, South-South technical cooperation is more aligned with recipients’
priorities and needs.

Adaptability: Since recipient and provider share similar development challenges, SouthSouth technical cooperation can generally provide highly-adapted and relevant solutions,
especially in terms of relevant technology and cultural understanding.

Southern knowledge: South-South technical cooperation diversifies knowledge and
expertise beyond industrialized models.
South-South Cooperation should also be seen as an expression of the growing capacity of
middle-income countries to contribute to the attainment of the Millennium Development Goals
as aid donors, not only as recipients.
The political component of SSC should at no time be ignored, since one of the main objectives of
SSC is reform of the international order and the global economic system. SSC is primarily a
mode of cooperation, aimed at strengthening bilateral relations among the southern countries,
and providing them with tools that will help the South develop and increase its collective
bargaining power. SSC creates solidarity among developing countries and aims to ensure
national self-sufficiency whilst providing support to the South as it becomes part of the global
economy.
Factors which differentiate South-South Cooperation from traditional North-South Cooperation
are namely a) non-interference in internal matters b) increased sensitivity to specific contexts c)
equality between partner countries d) respect for their independence and national sovereignty e)
promoting self-sufficiency f) diversification of ideas g) approaches and methods of cooperation
h) preference for the use of local resources i) generating broader elements of ownership j) greater
flexibility k) simplicity and speed of execution l) the preservation of diversity and cultural
identity. These factors are further strengthened by their adaptation to national priorities. South-
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South Cooperation is generally reckoned to be better value than traditional North-South
Cooperation, it tends to be less expensive and has a greater impact.
South-South Cooperation has a distinctly different flavor from North-South Cooperation. It tends
to be driven by mutual economic and commercial linkages, including access to dwindling natural
resources and not by charity. It also has a greater emphasis on technical cooperation and
knowledge transfer than conditionality-based project, programs or budget support.
In the thirty (30) years that South-South Cooperation has been in operation, there are still
discussions around how to define South-South cooperation in respect to North-South
Cooperation. These often include a disclaimer: “South-South cooperation is not supplementary to
North-South cooperation but is complimentary to North-South cooperation”. South-South
cooperation completes and balances international cooperation and is a necessary and valuable
element of North-South Cooperation. Negations and devaluations should not be appended to the
expected contribution of South-South cooperation to global/international cooperation.
4. Principles of South-South Cooperation:
As reaffirmed in the Ministerial Declaration of the 33rd Annual Meeting of the Ministers of
Foreign Affairs of the Member States of the Group of 77 and China, in September 2009, New
York, USA, the principles of SSC are:

South-South Cooperation is a common endeavor of peoples and countries of the South
and must be pursued as an expression of South-South solidarity and a strategy for
economic independence and self-reliance of the South based on their common objectives
and solidarity;

South-South Cooperation and its agenda must be driven by the countries of the South;

South-South Cooperation must not be seen as a replacement for North-South
Cooperation. Strengthening South-South Cooperation must not be a measure of coping
with the receding interest of the developed world in assisting developing countries;

Cooperation between countries of the South must not be analyzed and evaluated using the
same standards as those used for North-South relations;

Financial contributions from other developing countries should not be seen as official
development assistance from these countries to other countries of the South. These are
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merely expressions of solidarity and cooperation borne out of shared experiences and
sympathies;

South-South Cooperation is a development agenda based on premises, conditions and
objectives that are specific to the historic and political context of developing countries
and to their needs and expectations. South-South Cooperation deserves its own separate
and independent promotion;

South-South Cooperation is based on a strong, genuine, broad-based partnership and
solidarity;

South-South Cooperation is based on equality, mutual respect and mutual benefit;

South-South Cooperation respects national sovereignty in the context of shared
responsibility;

South-South Cooperation strives for strengthened multilateralism in the promotion of an
action-oriented approach to development challenges;

South-South Cooperation promotes the exchange of best practices among developing
countries in the common pursuit of their broad development objectives (encompassing all
aspects of international relations and not just in the traditional economic and technical
areas);

South-South Cooperation is based on the collective self-reliance of developing countries;

South-South Cooperation seeks to enable developing countries to play a more active role
in international policy and decision-making processes, in support of their efforts to
achieve sustainable development;

The modalities and mechanisms for promoting South-South Cooperation are based on
bilateral, sub-regional, regional and interregional cooperation and integration as well as
multilateral cooperation.
5. Types of South-South Cooperation
Numerous variations of South-South Cooperation exist. Depending on the criteria that have been
used, several types of SSC can be differentiated. Examples of such criteria are: the way the
cooperation is financed, the role of each stakeholder, the domain in which the cooperation takes
place, etc. UNESCO describes a classification system which distinguishes between several types
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of South-South Cooperation based on the activity of the cooperation. UNESCO differentiates the
following types of cooperation as follows:

Sharing experiences and good practices: one or more developing countries with
experience and expertise in a certain domain exchange(s) this experience and expertise
with one or more other developing countries.

Strengthening of networks: several institutions from different developing countries form
a network and work together within this network.

Capacity-building: Capacity-building in the context of South-South Cooperation is about
increasing the ability of a southern country to promote development. The southern
countries help each other build up their capacity to promote development. For example,
capacity-building can include the training of personnel and the purchase of equipment.

Partnership development: the developing countries start a partnership and set up a
common project to build on development.
6. Drivers of South-South Cooperation
Drivers of South-South Cooperation that developing countries have found to have long-lasting
benefits and deserve further attention include:

Health: South-South Cooperation in public health increases the collective ability of
southern countries to fight inequality and to promote the highest attainable level of
health for all. In the midst of different crises, the South has seen tremendous success
in combating a number of infectious diseases.
Data from the World Health
Organization shows that 36 million cases of tuberculosis have been cured over the
past 15 years and 8 million deaths have been averted. In the past 8 years, new HIV
infections world-wide have been reduced by 17%, with a 15% reduction in subSaharan Africa, and a nearly 25% reduction in East Asia.

Education: The developing nations have worked hard to provide education and skills
to their respective work-forces.

Policy: Effective policy frameworks in countries that have efficient governance and
functioning economies could share their experiences with other developing countries
whose weak policy-making structures and inefficient and often corrupt governments
hamper their development.
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
Science & technology: Developing countries are rapidly moving ahead to create hubs
of knowledge based on bright and educated people and are looking for ways to
exchange relevant technology across the South.

Institutional capacity: The developing nations often have world class institutions
owing to immense experience; numerous ways to develop institutional capacities
have been tried and tested in the South.

Interdependence: The South realizes that interdependence between individuals and
their communities can go a long way to overcoming their development challenges.

Outlook towards globalization: Many developing countries have been able to derive
benefits from globalization. SSC provides a platform to exchange experiences and
foster innovative developmental strategies.

Support of the North: Shared goals (such as human development, security, peace etc.)
can be achieved effectively if SSC can be supplemented in cooperation with the
North (UN, 2004).
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Chapter 2. South-South Cooperation: A Historical Perspective
1. History of South-South Cooperation
The concept of South-South Cooperation originated in South-East Asia more than 50 years ago
and has been used for decades as a basis for academic research and voluntary cooperative efforts
between southern countries to promote South-South trade and investment. The end of World War
II provided impetus for identifying the underdeveloped regions of the world which, at that time,
were neither industrialized nor socialist. These underdeveloped regions were comprised of
countries struggling to overcome their colonial heritage while at the same time they were being
pressed to take sides in the Cold War which followed World War II. An understanding of their
common interests and of the mutual benefits of cooperation was the seed which led to the
creation of institutional frameworks for South-South Cooperation.
Many developing countries, especially those emerging from colonial rule, began questioning the
basis of the international system of economic relations and set out to jointly advance proposals
for changing its structure and management. These developing countries realized that they were
better off acting together rather than being allies of one or the other of the superpowers. The
Bandung Conference, held in Indonesia in 1955 where Afro-Asian nations met and recognized
the urgency of promoting economic cooperation among themselves, signaled the beginning of a
trend which was to have a profound influence on future international cooperation. The founding
of the Non-Aligned Movement (NAM) in 1961 and the Group of 77 (G-77) in 1964 accelerated
the developing countries’ drive for collective self-reliance.
Both the Non-Aligned Movement and the G-77 were instances of cooperative political
mobilization and collective bargaining, wherein propositions such as a new international
economic order were advanced. However, thus far the NAM and the G-77 have failed to yield
the economic self-reliance and political independence that developing countries had sought.
The 1970s were marked by great optimism about the ability of the South to reshape the
international structure of power and economic relations in a more equitable direction. The
increased activism of G-77 and NAM during this period led to the adoption by the UN General
Assembly of resolutions on the New International Economic Order and on new forms for
technology transfer between countries. The UN established the United Nations Conference on
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Trade and Development (UNCTAD) to assist the South in the area of trade policy and
promotion.
The Commission for Science and Technology and the UN Fund for Science and Technology in
Development (UNFSTD) were also established. In 1972, the UN General Assembly set up a
working group to examine ways of intensifying technical cooperation among developing
countries (TCDC). This led to the establishment in 1974 of a Special Unit within the United
Nations Development Program (UNDP)to promote TCDC (SU/TCDC).
Between 1973 and 1977, the UN General Assembly adopted a number of resolutions calling
upon the international community in general and the United Nations system in particular to assist
the developing countries in their efforts to increase technical exchanges among themselves. In
addition, in l975, the Governing Council of the UNDP adopted a decision on new dimensions in
technical cooperation, which called for increased emphasis to be placed on government
execution and TCDC in the implementation of technical cooperation programs. These efforts
culminated in the United Nations Conference on TCDC, held in Buenos Aires in l978. The
Buenos Aires Plan of Action (BAPA) adopted by the Conference sets out a comprehensive
conceptual and operational framework for the promotion of TCDC. BAPA presents 38 practical
recommendations for promoting TCDC, including specific instructions for supporting SSC, such
as “international organizations and developed countries should provide financial and other
assistance for developing countries (institutions) that can contribute to TCDC” and “review
existing policies and procedures in order to improve the environment for TCDC and facilitate its
widespread use.” BAPA represents a major milestone in the evolution of SSC and its support
activities.
2. Global Trend Towards Supporting South-South Cooperation
NAM established the Group for South-South Consultation and Coordination (G-15) in 1989. The
G-15 promotes bilateral South-South Cooperation by providing unified input to influence the
policies of other international organizations such as the World Trade Organization and the Group
of Seven rich industrialized nations.
These developments led to an increased interest in SSC as an instrument to promote a new
system of participation and exchange among developing countries, not only to support their
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overall development objectives but also to ensure their more effective participation in the newly
emerging structure of international relations.
The G-77, held its first South Summit in Havana in April 2000. This summit set the groundwork
for the 2003 Marrakech Declaration and the accompanying Marrakech Framework, which
established long-term goals and strategies for participating countries. The Marrakech documents
prioritized technology transfer and skill development, literacy, eliminating trade barriers, and
direct investment, particularly in infrastructure and information systems. They also highlighted
the need for assistance programs to help eradicate hunger and HIV/AIDS and to promote debt
relief, environmental tourism and sustainability. A second summit was held in 2005 in Doha,
Qatar where leaders of developing nations agreed to make a more energetic effort to deepen and
revitalize South-South Cooperation to take advantage of the new geography of international
economic relations while recognizing this cooperation as complementary to and not a substitute
for North-South Cooperation.
This commitment to South-South Cooperation is contained in the Doha Declaration endorsed by
the leaders. The summit also endorsed the Doha Plan of Action to ensure that their decisions
could be implemented efficiently and effectively. The leaders stated that the role of South-South
Cooperation in the overall context of multilateralism was a continuing process that was vital to
confront the challenges faced by the South. They further agreed that SSC needed further
strengthening, by enhancing the capacities of the institutions and the mechanisms that promote
such cooperation. Additional follow-up meetings were planned to monitor the work program
extending from this effort.
An international conference on financing for development held in Monterrey, Mexico in March
2002, specifically encouraged South-South Cooperation, including through Triangular
Cooperation, to facilitate exchanges of views on successful strategies, practices and experience
and replication of projects. Further, it urged the strengthening of South-South Cooperation to
deliver assistance. The Monterrey Consensus confirmed the target of providing 0.7 per cent of
Gross National Income (GNI) unconditionally for achieving the MDGs.
The World Summit on sustainable development, held in Johannesburg, South Africa, in August
2002, adopted a declaration and an implementation plan that specifically endorsed South-South
Cooperation and strong regional and sub-regional action. In December 2003, the United Nations
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General Assembly adopted Resolution 58/220, declaring December 19th the annual United
Nations Day for South-South Cooperation. This declaration serves to focus attention on SSC and
to promote more extensive participation in SSC efforts.
The General Assembly also urged all UN agencies and other multilateral organizations to
mainstream SSC programmatically and to increase resource allocations to support SSC activities.
The Third United Nations conference on the least developed countries, held in Brussels in May
2001, emphasized the importance of South-South Cooperation in capacity-building and
establishing best practices, particularly in the areas of health, education, training, environment,
science and technology, trade, investment, and transit transport cooperation.
Most South-South and North-South activities occurred within the framework of regional and
sub-regional arrangements. Many of these arrangements originated in Africa, which had been a
staging ground for some of the most significant progress towards regional integration and
partnership for development. The largest integration effort is the 53-member African Union
(AU). Since January 2005, this body has focused its energy on a significant effort towards
economic and political integration throughout the continent. During the last AU Heads of State
meeting, held in 2005 in Abuja, a major topic of discussion was operationalizing a number of
common institutions. The African Union has also established common governmental bodies such
as the Parliament, the Court of Justice, the Human Rights Commission, and the Peace and
Security Council.
The New Partnership for African Development, (NEPAD), has continued to grow during this
period. NEPAD has gradually become a coordination mechanism for the continent’s
development efforts and a leading interlocutor with external partners. NEPAD has introduced a
new approach to African development by linking poverty eradication to governance issues such
as democracy, human rights and corruption. In 2004, calls for the harmonization of the agenda of
the African Union and NEPAD were made by a number of African leaders.
Regional and sub-regional economic communities continue to be the driving force of SouthSouth Cooperation in Africa. The Southern African Development Community (SADC) has been
among the most dynamic sub-regional groupings in the past four years. South Africa has been
the engine of this progress. Its economy has dominated the whole region and provided the main
source of FDI flows to that sub-region.
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In addition to the progress demonstrated across Africa, Asia too has taken a lead role in
promoting South-South Cooperation through regional and sub-regional integration. The 10member Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) continues to lead in this area. Under
a framework agreement signed in 2000, ASEAN members pursued increased digital readiness in
the region. Subsequently, the South Asian Association of Regional Cooperation (SAARC) was
also formed and today is comprised of 7 South Asian countries with similar objectives.
3. Recent UN Initiatives to Boost South-South Cooperation
The most important UN meeting on South-South Cooperation in decades highlighted growing
political and economic ties within the developing world, as countries from the South assume
leading roles in decisions on global issues ranging from economic recovery to food security and
climate change.
Hosted by Kenya and held at the UN’s Nairobi headquarters in 2009, the conference sought to
promote and sharpen the benefits of mutual support among developing and transition economies,
as well as maintain support for the process from the developed world through Triangular
Cooperation. It also reviewed 30 years of progress since the 1978 United Nations Conference on
Technical Cooperation among Developing Countries held in Buenos Aires. By adopting the final
text of the Conference, known formally as the Nairobi Outcome Document, the participants
recognized the increasing power of South-South Cooperation in the decades since the Buenos
Aires meeting. The meeting also recognized the record economic growth of some developing
countries and the establishment of regional common markets, customs unions, inter-state
transport, communications networks and bilateral capacity-building projects involving
developing countries as well as middle-income countries or developed countries in Triangular
Cooperation.
To realize the full potential of South-South Cooperation, particularly in the context of multiple
world crises, the Nairobi Outcome invites developed countries to expand their participation in
Triangular Cooperation, in particular capacity-building and training, and to follow-through on
their official development assistance commitments. Echoing the words of many speakers during
the Conference, the document stresses that South-South Cooperation is not a substitute for, but
rather a complement to, North-South Cooperation.
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It also encourages developing countries to assess the effectiveness of South-South and triangular
cooperation while promoting the development of methodologies and statistics to enhance
national coordination mechanisms. The document also emphasizes the importance of sharing
lessons learned. It urges that United Nations funds, programs and specialized agencies take
concrete measures to support South-South Cooperation by acting as catalysts for cooperation and
strengthening the capabilities of regional organizations.
Welcoming the work that the UN is doing to foster SSC, the Nairobi Outcome reaffirms the
importance of the Special Unit for South-South Cooperation hosted by the UNDP, particularly in
implementing that agency’s latest framework for cooperation. It encourages Member States to
provide support for that effort.
4.Milestones in South-South Cooperation
1945
March - The Arab League is established. Founding members were Egypt, Iraq,
Lebanon, Saudi Arabia, Syria and Yemen. Currently there are 22 member countries.
June - Representatives of 50 countries meet in San Francisco at the United Nations
Conference on International Organization to draw up the United Nations Charter.
The United Nations officially comes into existence on 24 October 1945, when the
Charter was ratified by China, France, the Soviet Union, the United Kingdom, the
United States and a majority of other signatories.
1947
General Agreement on Tariffs and Trade (GATT) is founded to deal with the trade
side of international economic cooperation and to join the two “Bretton Woods”
institutions, the World Bank and the International Monetary Fund.
1955
Asian-African Conference in Bandung, Indonesia. The “Bandung Conference”
marks the launching point for large scale Afro-Asian relations in terms of economic
and social cooperation. Twenty-nine countries representing over half the world's
population send delegates. A consensus is reached in which "colonialism in all of its
manifestations" is condemned, implicitly censuring the Soviet Union, as well as
Western influences.
1960
February – The Latin America Free Trade Area (LAFTA) is established by the
Treaty of Montevideo (1960-1980); LAFTA is succeeded by ALADI in 1980.
September - Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC)is set up
among13 of the world’s largest oil producing countries in order to stabilize and
regulate oil production levels, processes, and investments, as well as pricing in
international markets.
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1961
Non-Aligned Movement (NAM) is set up at the Belgrade Summit, Yugoslavia.
1963
Organization of African Unity (OAU) is established. In 2002 the OAU became the
African Union (AU)
1964
February –The First United Nations Conference for Trade and Development
(UNCTAD) is held. At the end of the conference a group of 77 developing countries
sign the "Joint Declaration of the Seventy-Seven Countries" creating the G-77,
the largest coalition of developing countries/least developed countries in the UN
system. The G-77 currently has 131 member countries.
1967
Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN)is established. Founding
members included Indonesia, Malaysia, Philippines, Singapore and Thailand.
October – The First Ministerial Meeting of the G-77 adopts the Charter of Algiers
with the basic principles of the group defined as the New International Economic
Order (NIEO) package.
1969
September –The Organization of Islamic Countries (OIC) is set up following the
summit of Islamic countries held in Rabat, Morocco. The OIC has 57 member
countries.
The Andean Community is created by the Treaty of Cartagena. Members are
Bolivia, Chile, Colombia, Ecuador and Peru. (Chile and Venezuela withdrew in 1976
and 2006, respectively).
1973
July- The Caribbean Community (CARICOM) is established under the Treaty of
Chaguaramas. Founding members were Barbados, Jamaica, Guyana, and Trinidad
and Tobago.
1974
UN General Assembly adopts Declaration for the Establishment of a New
International Economic Order following requests of the G-77 and participants in
the 1973 NAM Summit of Algiers.
1975
The Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS) is set up. Members
include Benin, Burkina Faso, Cape Verde, Côte d'Ivoire, Gambia, Ghana, Guinea,
Guinea Bissau, Liberia, Mali, Niger, Nigeria, Senegal, Sierra Leone, and Togo.
1978
Conference on TCDC in Buenos Aires
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1980
February – The ALALC is replaced by Latin American Integration Association
(ALADI) . Cuba becomes a member in 1999.
April – Southern African Development Coordination Conference – SADCC is
founded as part of the Lusaka Declaration. Founding members are Angola, Botswana,
Lesotho, Malawi, Mozambique, Swaziland, Tanzania, Zambia and Zimbabwe.
1981
May – The Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC)is set up. Members include Bahrain,
Kuwait, Oman, Qatar, Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates.
High-Level Conference of the G-77 in Caracas Venezuela adopts the Caracas
Programme of Action on Economic Cooperation among Developing Countries
1983
November-Third World Academy of Science (TWAS) an autonomous international
organization is created in Trieste, Italy, by a distinguished group of scientists from the
South under the leadership of the late Nobel laureate Mr. Abdus Salam of Pakistan.
The TWAS is officially launched by the Secretary General of the United Nations,
Javier Perez de Cuellar, in 1985.
December –The Perez Guerrero Trust Fund for Economic and Technical
Cooperation among Developing Countries (PGTF)is established in accordance
with the UN General Assembly Resolution 38/21
1985
South Asian Association for Regional Cooperation (SAARC) is set up. Founding
members include Bangladesh, Bhutan, India, Maldives, Nepal, Pakistan and Sri
Lanka
1987
The South Commission, an intergovernmental body of developing countries is
established. The inaugural ceremony is addressed by its chairman Julius Nyerere
former Tanzanian president.
1989
April 1989 Ministerial Meetings of the Group of 77 - Agreement on the Global
System of Trade Preferences Among Developing Countries (GSTP) enters into
force. Forty-one countries ratify the Agreement.
September - G-15iscreated at a Summit Level Group of Developing following the
conclusion of the 9th NAM Summit in Belgrade
16
1991
March –The Treaty of Asuncion is signed creating the Common Market of South
Cone (Mercosur). Members Brazil, Argentina, Paraguay and Uruguay. (Venezuela
became full member in July 2006 – pending ratification by the Brazilian and
Paraguayan Parliaments).
Organization of African Unity Heads of State and Government sign the Abuja
Treaty establishing the African Economic Community (AEC) at the 27th Ordinary
Session of the Assembly.
1993
Japan is the first developed country to offer support for South-South Cooperation at
the TICAD International Conference.
1994
January – The Treaty of Establishment of the West African Economic and
Monetary Union (UEMOA)includes Benin, Burkina Faso, Côte d’Ivoire, Mali,
Niger, Senegal, and Togo and Guinea-Bissau.
International Conference on Population and Development (ICPD) held in Cairo,
Egypt. The Program of Action emphasizes the South-South Cooperation model for
achieving the ICPD goals in reproductive health, family planning, population and
development.
April: Partners in Population and Development, an intergovernmental body of
developing countries is established with 10 initial members.
September: International Conference on Population and Development (ICPD)
1995
Non-Aligned Movement Centre for South-South Technical Cooperation (NAMCSSTC)
First Board Meeting of PPD in Harare
1997
June – Developing 8, founded through the Istanbul Declaration to further
development cooperation amongst Bangladesh, Egypt, Indonesia, Iran, Malaysia,
Nigeria, Pakistan and Turkey.
1998
Non Aligned Movement (NAM) creates the Centre for South-South Technical
Cooperation(CSSTC) located in Jakarta.
2000
April – The First South Summit is held in in Havana, Cuba with 132 member
countries of the G-77 attending. The Havana Plan of Action is adopted, calling
members to improve South-South Cooperation.
September - The UN General Assembly Millennium Summit sets the Millennium
Development Goals(MDG) to alleviate poverty and promote sustainable development in the
developing world.
17
October- I Ministerial Conference of the Forum on China-Africa Cooperation(FOCAC)
held in Beijing. The FOCAC meets every three years and focuses on collective consultation
and dialogue and a cooperation mechanism between the developing countries.
2001
June – Shanghai Cooperation Organization (SCO) a permanent intergovernmental
international organization is set up replacing the former Shanghai Five created in 1996. The
SCO members are Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, China, Russia, Uzbekistan and Tajikistan.
Observer members include India, Pakistan, Iran and Mongolia
2002
July - The 37th Summit of the OAU 2001 formally adopts the NEPAD - New Partnership
for Africa’s Development strategic framework document.
July –The African Union(AU)replaces the former Organization of African Unity(OAU).
2003
June – India, Brazil and South Africa sign the Brasilia Declaration setting up the IBSA
Forum. In 2004 the forum creates the IBAS Fund for alleviation of poverty and hunger in
the South.
August - The G-20 group of developing countries is established at the WTO Ministerial
Conference held in Cancun, Mexico.
September - The G90 is established at the WTO Conference in Cancun. This is the largest
grouping of members in the World Trade Organization including the poorest countries from
the African Union, LDCs and African Caribbean and Pacific and ACP group.
December - Resolution 58/220 of 23 December 2003, the UN General Assembly declares 19
December, United Nations Day for South-South Cooperation.
Conference in Marrakesh, Morocco, on South-South Cooperation, G-77Marrakesh
Declaration adopted
2004
The African Parliament holds its inaugural session in Addis Ababa.
2005
March - Paris Declaration for Aid Effectiveness
June – Second South Summit is held in Doha, Qatar.
September – 50th anniversary of Bandung Conference adoption of Declaration on the New
Asian-African Strategic Partnership
December - Hong Kong Ministerial Meeting of the WTO Joint Declaration of the G-20, the
G-33, the ACP, the LDCs, the African Group and the Small Economies in order to
develop a common approach to issues of common interest in the negotiations of the Doha
Round.
2006
September - 14th- Summit of the Non Aligned Movement (NAM) held in Havana, Cuba.
18
Leaders agree to set up institutions of the South such as the Bank of the South, World TV
Network, Working Group in Energy Security, university system of the South.
November – III Ministerial Conference of the Forum on China-Africa Cooperation is
held in Beijing. China announces the doubling of financial aid to African nations by 2009.
2007
December - Bank of the South is established at a meeting of seven South American Leaders
in Buenos Aires
2008
January
-
Common
Market
Gulf
Cooperation
Countries
enters
into
force.
April - I Africa – India Summit held in New Delhi, India
September –The South-South Fund for Development and Humanitarian Assistance, is
approved at the 2005 Second South Summit in Qatar, and is formally launched at a signing
ceremony during the annual high-level ministerial meeting of the Group of 77 in September.
The government of Qatar makes an initial pledge of 20 million dollars, with an additional 2
million dollars each from India and China. The Fund, to be hosted by Qatar, aims to assist the
countries of the South in economic, social, health and educational development. It will also
address the problems of hunger and poverty, as well as lessen the impact of natural disasters
on developing countries
September- Accra Agenda
2009
UN High Level Conference on South-South Cooperation in Nairobi, Kenya, 1 December
2009
19
Chapter 3.South-South Cooperation: Opportunities and Threats
1. Opportunities
Whilst general understanding and agreement exists on the value of South-South Cooperation as a
means of sharing knowledge and experiences that originate in the South, discussions at the UN
and other high-level meetings tend to focus on conceptual and political aspects of South-South
Cooperation, examining whether South-South Cooperation is complementary to North-South
Cooperation or whether it should serve as a substitute for traditional North-South Cooperation.
Practical aspects of South-South and Triangular Cooperation tend to be neglected or touched on
only superficially on such occasions.
There is ample room for improving South-South and Triangular Cooperation in the following
areas:

A comprehensive information bank should be set up to track South-South and Triangular
Cooperation efforts

A regional framework is in place to promote knowledge sharing about best practices of
South-South Cooperation, but there is a need for inter-regional and global frameworks to
gather best practices about South-South Cooperation.

Good practices in South-South and Triangular Cooperation should be better
communicated to the international community; there is a low degree of understanding
about the nature and effectiveness of South-South Cooperation.

The efforts of bilateral donors, international financial institutions and UN organizations
to support South-South Cooperation should be coordinated to avoid overlaps.
South-South Cooperation is important for two reasons. First, SSC contributes to economic
advances in southern nations, especially in Africa, Southern Asia and South America. Second,
SSC lacks the overtones of cultural, political, and economic supremacy sometimes associated
with traditional North to South transfers from the North.
The increased engagement of the international community in South-South Cooperation means
that there are more resources available for developing countries to pursue their national
development plans and to meet the Millennium Development Goals. This is important, not least
because many development assistance committee donors are failing to meet their aid
20
commitments and aid levels are declining because of the financial crisis. While the crisis may
also affect South-South Cooperation negatively, such cooperation could play an important role in
seeking common solutions among developing countries. South-South Cooperation is also
generally better value than traditional North-South Cooperation, has lower transaction costs, is
less donor-driven and comes with fewer conditions than assistance from many traditional donors.
A number of developing countries are experiencing economic growth. Their increased wealth
could provide more resources for South-South Cooperation which in turn could help strengthen
the economic, environmental, cultural and social advances that are being made.
The new dynamics of globalization are failing to produce the desired results at the moment,
because the benefits and costs of globalization are unevenly distributed. However, those
dynamics can be seen as opportunities. Globalization produces possibilities that can be, with
some assistance, translated into real opportunities. These possibilities include: a) access to
development capital and financial services) access to global markets) access to appropriate
technology and know-how to improve productivity) access to successful development solutions
and access to infrastructure support and other basic services. South-South Cooperation can help
translate these possibilities into opportunities and then into benefits by serving as the foundation
of a new global and inclusive partnership that represents the interests and commitment of the
public and the private sector, civil society entities and the general public.
Another opportunity for South-South Cooperation is the awareness of all involved parties about
the pitfalls of foreign aid. In North-South Cooperation, donor countries often do not recognize
the lack of uniformity among the donor recipients, resulting in poorly prescribed policies. These
differences cannot be ignored. For example, two recipient countries could have vastly different
ways of handling regulatory policy. Regulatory policy is important for donors when determining
their cooperation strategy. This case shows how more generally, the donor strategy must be
tailored to the country’s regulatory standards in order to be effective. South-South Cooperation
puts donors and recipients on the same level which means that the recipient can help set the
donor strategy that will lead to results that are desired by the donor and beneficial for the
country.
2. Threats
21
Developing southern nations have increasingly turned to each other for economic development
assistance to complement North-South aid. This has contributed to substantial economic growth
in developing countries.
As countries like Brazil, China, India and South Africa emerge as regional players, the
traditional ODA is being challenged. In a move that is challenging the supremacy of the North,
these countries are providing increasing support and assistance to other southern countries. With
considerable economic clout and an aggressive strategy of forging partnership in new markets,
China has emerged as a defacto leader in South-South Cooperation. India and Brazil have also
worked hard to promote South-South Cooperation. With the help of their fellow southern
countries, the South is increasingly able to make its voice heard in international forums and
claim their share of the benefits that accrue as the South becomes more developed.
South-South Cooperation and North-South Cooperation is complementary; South-South
Cooperation does not have southern hegemony as its goal. The Secretary-General of UNCTAD
argues that the North has been much more of a partner than a competitor in the success of the
South and that it will share in the dividends of the success of the South; consumers worldwide he
contends benefit from the low-cost, high-quality products and services from the South.
The new dynamism of the South is a cause for celebration not for fear. With this in mind, it is
important to note that:

First, the North has been much more of a partner than a competitor in the success of the
South. It has shared in the dividends of that success and will continue to do so.

Second, a stronger South will generate demand for exports from other countries and boost
investment opportunities with higher returns.

Third, consumers worldwide are already benefiting, and will do so increasingly, from the
low-cost, high-quality products and services now on offer from the South.

Fourth, the fact that more and more developing countries are becoming competitive
participants in global production chains and labor markets is likely to have a net jobcreating impact in the South and the North alike.

Fifth, the more successful developing countries set good examples for others to follow,
enabling them to avoid repeating past mistakes and embark on development models that
have already been proven to work.
22

And sixth, emerging countries in the South can join the ranks of other nations in
confronting such global challenges as migration, environmental threats, HIV/AIDS and
other pandemics.
3. SWOT analysis of South-South Cooperation
Strengths







Weaknesses
Learning from each other
Economic, environmental, cultural and
social advances
Changing North-South relations and
changing balance of power
Lower transaction costs
Opportunities
SSC will still increase
Opportunities as a result of
globalization
Increased awareness of the differences
among developing countries will have a
positive impact on policy
23







Benefits are not evenly shared among
developing countries
The gap between North and South will
remain for a long time
Lack of resources and ineffective
coordination
Threats
Complications about ownership or
management
Northern fears of the rising South
Political problems are an obstacle for
cooperation.
Trade barriers and intellectual property
rights
Chapter 4.South-South Cooperation in Reproductive Health, Family
Planning and Population
1. South-South Cooperation and ICPD
South-South Cooperation in the areas of reproductive health and other population related
activities is based on two premises; one, that a number of developing countries have in the last
several decades acquired considerable expertise and experience in the design and implementation
of highly successful and effective national family planning and reproductive health programs.
Two, that the sharing of this expertise and experience among developing countries will help
enrich and strengthen the entire range of their population-related policies and programs. The
most recent catalyst was provided by the 1994 International Conference on Population and
Development (ICPD) and its preparatory processes. But its antecedents can be found in several
developments described in this paper that took place in the 1970s and the 1980s.
The first was the establishment of the International Committee on Management of Population
Programs (ICOMP) as a Third-World organization in 1973. This was inspired by an idea very
similar to that of promoting South-South Cooperation. The ground work for ICOMP was laid at
several preparatory meetings among family planning program managers from developing
countries.
The second of these developments was the decision of Indonesia, which had developed a highly
successful family planning program under the leadership of Dr.Haryono Suyono, to launch
bilateral exchanges with other developing countries. In the 1980s, Indonesia began offering
short-term fellowships to program managers from Bangladesh under a USAID funded project.
Some 400 Bangladeshi nationals participated in Observation/Study Tours of Indonesia and by all
accounts the observations in Indonesia and the activities undertaken by the participants on their
return to Bangladesh led to major improvements and innovations in Bangladesh’s family
planning program.
A ministerial-level meeting of the NAM states, which was organized by Indonesia at the
initiative of the Minister for Population, Dr. Suyono and with the support of the Rockefeller
Foundation and UNFPA, in Bali in November 1993, strongly emphasized the South-South
modality for future cooperation on population issues among developing countries.
26
The third was the initiative taken by the Rockefeller Foundation, in consultation with UNFPA, to
organize in Bellagio, Italy a high-level consultation on how to generate political and financial
support for family planning programs in developing countries. This meeting was seen as part of
the ICPD preparatory process. The importance of South-South Cooperation in the context of
population issues and reproductive health issues was further underlined in the draft final
document prepared by the ICPD preparatory committee in April 1994 for submission to the
Cairo Conference.
2. Partners in Population and Development (PPD): A South-South Initiative
Following the suggestion made at the Bellagio Forum, the Rockefeller Foundation organized
another consultation in Bellagio in April, 1994 this time on the specific theme of Partnership for
Population and Development. In order to decide on and carry out a follow-up to the Bellagio
agreement, the participants agreed to constitute a working group with six developing countries
(Indonesia, Egypt, Mexico, Zimbabwe, Bangladesh and Morocco) and seven donors (USAID,
EU, Japan, Germany, World Bank, UNFPA and IPPF). The working group chaired by Minister
Dr. Haryono Suyono met in New-York in June, 1994 and came up with a set of specific and
well-defined proposals for future cooperation among developing countries on population. It
proposed a new South-South initiative called Partners in Population and Development (PPD).
27
Chapter 5. Partners in Population and Development- a South-South
Initiative
Since ICPD, South-South Cooperation has maintained its momentum thanks to
integration movements in regional and sub-regional communities from the South.
Exchanges within and across regions have been reinforced while intra-south
development is picking up due to major contributions from developing countries. At the
same time, intergovernmental bodies like PPD are providing the framework for better
interregional exchanges. Meanwhile, new trends in South-South Cooperation have
emerged, including better organization of major developing countries in the delivery of
development assistance, a more systematic approach to South-South Cooperation, and
improved integration of population and development in South-South Cooperation.
Concurrently, new fields have been tested, such as environment, health and more
integrated policies to improve the reproductive health sector.
While agreeing to the formation of PPD as a new intergovernmental group, the participants of
another meeting in Jakarta (August, 1994) underscored the following points:
a. PPD should be a South-led initiative, but with close ties and involvement with
bilateral donors and multilateral institutions.
b. PPD programs should complement and reinforce existing South-South activities and
support structures.
c. PPD should focus on developing long-term collaborative exchanges between
countries for creating opportunities for mutual benefit. The emphasis on a
comprehensive program of technical exchange which would strengthen field
capacities to offer family planning and reproductive health assistance in both the near
and long term is what would make PPD’s program stand out from the currently
available South-South opportunities.
d. PPD is not a funding mechanism, but will advocate and campaign for the increased
flow of resources through existing channels.
28
1. Launching of PPD
PPD was launched at a press conference on September 9, 1994 in Cairo during the United
Nation’s International Conference on Population and Development (ICPD). The concept of
South-South Cooperation also received a strong boost in the Program of Action (PoA) adopted
by the ICPD that same year. Paragraph 14.16 proposes that “More attention should be given to
South-South Cooperation as well as to new ways of mobilizing private contributions, particularly
in partnership with nongovernmental organizations. The international community should urge
donor agencies to improve and modify their funding procedures in order to facilitate and give
higher priority to supporting direct South-South collaborative arrangements.” Finally the PoA
states that “South-South at all levels is an important instrument of development. In this regard,
such cooperation- technical cooperation among developing countries- should play an important
part in the implementation of the present PoA (para. 16.19).”
The ICPD thus endorsed fully the concept of South-South Cooperation and underlined the need
to fund specific programs aimed at implementing this concept.
2. PPD: A Unique Organization
The concept of South-South Cooperation in the fields of population and development is not new.
However, earlier exchanges of experiences and technical know-how between developing
countries tended to be adhoc and consisted mostly for short-term training and study tours.
Usually, these were donor-initiated and donor-driven exchanges. Unlike other organizations,
however, PPD does not merely incorporate or add a South-South dimension to its program, but
develops mechanisms that help institutionalize South-South Cooperation and thus taps
considerable, but still underutilized resources for development in a systematic way. In fact, PPD
is the first and only organization devoted entirely to fostering long-term South-South
partnerships in reproductive health and family planning. It is important to note that PPD does not
confine its activities to its members alone. On the contrary, it is the organization’s explicit
philosophy to reach out to NGOs, civil society actors, training institutions and governments of
other developing countries to share available resources, capacities and experiences.
29
3. Membership in PPD
PPD welcomes new members to multiply the impact of its efforts. Full membership is open to
governments of developing countries and countries in transition who have demonstrated a strong
commitment to the ICPD PoA. Members contribute a minimum of US$ 20,000 annually to the
organization’s budget and must also be prepared to invest human and financial resources in
support of their participation in the agenda to fulfill the ICPD and MDG goals. China, India and
South Africa contribute between US$ 40,000-US$ 80,000 each yearly and others are encouraged
to act likewise.
Member countries appoint a representative to the PPD Board, usually the highest ranking
officials in charge of reproductive health matters, i.e. ministers or government leaders of similar
rank. They also designate an official to function as Partner Country Coordinator (PCC). The PCC
is the focal point for developing and implementing South-South Collaborative programs in
Member Countries.
4.Vision and Mission of PPD
4.1 Vision
To drive the global reproductive health and population agenda to attain sustainable development.
4.2 Mission
To assist each member country and other developing countries to address successfully the sexual
and reproductive health and rights, including family planning and HIV/AIDS, population and
development challenges through South-South collaboration by raising a common voice and
sharing sustainable, effective, efficient, accessible and acceptable solutions considering the
diverse economic, social, political, religious and cultural characteristics of our countries.
30
5. Focus of PPD:
Fig 1-PPD Tripartite Operational Framework
PPD - SSC
Tri-prong Operational Framework
Policy Advocacy
Advocate to governments
in developing policies to
help meet their
development goals,
building on regional
specificities and the
experiences of others.
Key Areas
• Family Planning
• Reproductive
Health
• Quality of
Service
• Commodity
Security
• Budget
Allocation
Regional
Integration
Promote regional
integration as a form
of SSC and also as a
tool to facilitate
knowledge sharing.
Key Areas
•
•
•
•
Population
Gender
Reproductive
Health
Policy
Technology Transfer
Contribute to the
innovation and
dissemination of
regionally pertinent
process and technology.
Key Areas
• Health Care
Services
• Family Planning
• Capacity
Building
• Information &
Communication
• Best Practices
All member countries (MCs) are committed to the implementation of the PoA agreed upon in
Cairo. This includes, among other things, moving people out of poverty, the advancement of
gender equality and equity, the empowerment of women through education, training and
awareness of their rights, universal access to quality reproductive healthcare and services, the
promotion of freedom of choice and the absence of coercion in family planning programs.
31
Within this overall framework, PPD gives priority to the following program areas:
1. Integration of ICPD goals and MDGs
2. Promotion, integration and strengthening the prevention and care for those with sexually
transmitted diseases (STDs) and HIV/AIDS within reproductive health care structures
3. Provision of family planning and reproductive health services aimed at the special needs
of male and female adolescents
4. Improving reproductive health commodity security (RHCS)
5. Improving gender equality
6. Strengthening adolescent sexual and reproductive health (ASRH)
In addition, there are several crosscutting areas including the empowerment of women and
concerns for female children as well as the prevention and eradication of all kinds of violence
against women.
6. PPD: An Organization Building on Comparative Advantages
As a result of its governance structure and geographical spread in 25 countries of the South that
cover 57 percent of the world population, PPD has a unique comparative advantage in activities
that require advocacy, sharing and exchange and capacity building. The collective consensus and
commitment emanating from the Board, represented by ministers of the countries themselves,
provides a distinct advantage in promoting South-South exchange on a wide variety of
experience including that of safe motherhood. PPD Board Meetings offer excellent opportunities
to generate enthusiasm and commitment for policy action. Independent from government or UN
bureacracy, PPD can act quickly, strategically and in a focused manner to address critical policy
and program issues.
PPD has gained valuableexperience on how to identify the elements of sucessful programming
and how to organize the cross-cultural transfer of best practices. In this regard, PPD has
developed a systematic and scientific methodology for documentingbest practices and has so far
developed ten best practices which are being produced anddisseminated. PPD, as a representative
of countries in the South, is well placed to undertake South-South Cooperation, and its southern
membership allows PPD to deal with sensitive issues. PPD could serve as an honest mediator in,
for example, disputes between North and South countries regarding program modelswhich are
32
deemed unaceptable by southern countries.
PPD also has a network of 22 Partner Institutions (PIs) as centres of excellence, which through a
series of PPD sponsored systematic, analytical and consultative processes, developed generic
modules on ICPD recommended thematic areas, institutionalized them and established a
mechanism for networking among them. These PIs are readily available resources for PPD’s skill
development and capacity building activities.
The annual forum for policy dialogue, organized in conjunction with the Board meetings, has
proved to be an effective platform to facilitate bilateral agreements among member countries to
share experiences and exchange expertise through longer term institutional arrangements. In this
context, PPD has been able to generate, on an increasing scale, willingness by the more advanced
countries of the alliance (e.g China) to provide support for such sharing and exchange activities,
as reflected in three MOUs signed between PPD and China.
In addition to the above, PPD has the following distinct comparative advantages;
1. Through its Board Members who are ministers from member countries, PPD has the
political commitment of member countries (MCs) behind PPD’s work to improve
reproductive health and family planning in a self-determined and sustained manner.
2. PPD’s culture of mutual trust, respect and openness places it in a unique position to
address culturally sensitive subjects. PPD was established on the premise that scarce
resources need to be pooled and shared for maximum cost-effectiveness.
3. PPD’s Observer status at the UN provides a platform for MCs to voice their opinion on
global issues and advocate in favor of issues that are of interest to them.
4. PPD members are willing to commit their own resources to help improve capacities not
only within their own but also within other developing countries.
7. PPD’s Value Added
In addition to the uniqueness of its mission, mandate and structure, PPD adds value for its
members in several other ways:
1. PPD takes a long-term approach to cooperative research, training and information
exchange.
33
2. PPD develops programs and projects that the countries themselves desire. This invariably
brings the kind of political commitment necessary for impact and sustainability
3. Since PPD Board Members are ministers, they can easily engage in dialogue with
counterparts in other countries. Because of their positions, PPD Board Members not only
possess the most relevant knowledge and overview of their countries’ priority needs and
opportunities, they are also in the best position to facilitate action.
4. Through its Board Members, PPD is most advantageously placed to have an impact on
policy improvement - another crucial element for developing successful programs.
5. PPD has a country coordinating mechanism comprised of senior government officials and
focal institutions from MCs, which helps ensure the efficient implementation of PPD’s
South-South Programs at the national level.
6. PPD does not work with governments alone. It strives to engage the whole spectrum of
civil society, from research and training institutions (Partner Institutes or PIs) to the
private sector, by forming partnerships to improve the sexual and reproductive health of
the poor. By working through PPD, donors too are able to have access to partnerships
throughout society.
34
Fig 2.PPD Partnership/Networking
UN system/
Donors
Governments
Private
Partners in
Population and
Development
Academic and
Centers of excellence
Foundation
s
NGOs/
Civil
7. PPD has long term and effective collaborative partnerships with the premier level training
and research institutes which help capacity development at the individual, institutional
and systems level of the MCs
8. PPD has the capability to mobilize reproductive health commodities between the MCs to
improve access within the developing nations
9. PPD is in a unique position to address highly sensitive cultural issues, such as the
involvement of religious leaders in reproductive health programs, or adolescents’ sexual
and reproductive rights - still considered taboo in many societies. Such issues do not
hamper PPD’s intentions to promote reproductive health and family planning within
different cultural settings.
35
8. PPD’s Systematic Efforts to boost South-South Cooperation
With limited financial resources, PPD has, since its inception, devoted itself to promoting and
supporting a number of South-South initiatives in the areas of development, reproductive health
and family planning at the international, regional and national levels.. At the initial stage, these
initiatives have involved a relatively small number of individuals and institutions. However, the
experience PPD has acquired in implementing hese initiatives has made it increasingly clear that
they will be much more successful and effective if they are backed by well-organized national
support structures in its member countries for South-South Cooperation in population and
development.
It is in this context that in the last couple of years, the Secretariat of PPD has encouraged and
supported the organization of national events in several member countries. So far, Pakistan,
Yemen, Uganda, Tunisia, Bangladesh, Senegal, Indonesia, the Gambia, South Africa, India,
Zimbabwe, Nigeria and Benin have organized such events, and Mali and Vietnam are planning
to organize similar events.
The national events organized by member countries have, broadly speaking, aimed at promoting
better understanding and appreciation of the concept of South-South Cooperation and
strengthening national support for South-South Cooperation in the areas of reproductive health,
population and development.
A national event which brings together representatives of all these sectors at least once a year
serves to provide briefings on:
a. Latest developments on the population and development scene;
b. The latest activities and plans of PPD;
c. The role played by the member country concerned in implementing these activities and
plans; and
d. Future challenges and opportunities.
As appropriate, such an event can also provide an opportunity to discussion coordination among
national institutions including university and research institutes as well as NGOs on activities in
research, training, policy dialogues, exchange of information, and technical cooperation in
relation to equipment and supplies. Regional and sub-regional cooperation is also discussed at
36
such events. The PPD Secretariat is represented at such events whenever possible and the
involvement of print and electronic media in the events are encouraged with a view to drawing
public attention to the concept and practice of South-South Cooperation in reproductive health,
population and development.
Reports of such national events are widely circulated, with a view to informing concerned
government ministries and departments as well as universities and research and training
institutions about the national activities and plans in the area of South-South cooperation and the
work of PPD. The organization of a national event on a regular basis has led to the formation of
inter-ministerial/inter-departmental committees (National Task Forces for South-South
Cooperation) and networks of training and research institutions as well as to the establishment of
collaborative arrangements with parliamentary institutions and NGOs.
The objectives and terms of references of the National Task Forces are noted below;
1. To coordinate with the government and other stakeholders in the field of population,
reproductive health and development;
2. To promote knowledge and information sharing, documentation and dissemination of
lessons learnt and best practices on reproductive health, population and development
programs;
3. To advocate for an enabling environment to promote reproductive health through SouthSouth cooperation;
4. To facilitate national capacity building, including training and research on reproductive
health, population and development;
5. To increase PPD’s visibility and to promote the concept of South-South Cooperation.
So far, Bangladesh, India, Pakistan and Nigeria have constituted National Task Forces for SouthSouth Cooperation, and China, Ethiopia, Thailand and Ghana have integrated the concept in their
existing committees for reproductive health, population and development.
8.1 Inventory of Products and Services available for Reproductive Health and
Family Planning
In 2008, PPD initiated a process of collecting, compiling and reporting on the products and
services related to reproductive health, family planning, population and development among its
37
members and other developing countries. Since then three reports have been prepared and shared
with the member countries. Member countries overwhelmingly chose to participate in the stock
taking and the results were well received by the member countries. The aim of this activity is to
develop an inventory of products and services exchanged among member countries and with
other developing countries. It also aims to develop a format for the systematic collection and
compilation of information on such exchanges on a regular basis.
9. Future Focus of Partners in Population and Development to promote
South-South Cooperation
The first objective should be to continue to promote and strengthen political commitment
and support for South-South Co-operation at the highest levels. PPD as an
intergovernmental organization involves senior political leaders and policy makers in its
policymaking bodies. Many ministers and senior government officials regularly
participate in PPD’s Board and Executive Committee meetings. PPD should work with
these senior officials, supporting them as they promote South-South activities in their
home countries. To further facilitate the growth of South-South cooperation, PPD can
organize inter-ministerial or inter-departmental bodies to deal with South-South activities
within the countries and can also organize bi-lateral visits of senior policy makers
between and among member countries.
A few years ago India set up a steering committee including representatives of several
ministries as well as academic institutions and NGOs to coordinate activities relating to
South-South Cooperation. Action along these lines will help secure high-level and broadbased political agreement and cooperation towards translating into reality the potential
benefits of South-South co-operation.
1. Non-governmental organizations of the South can play a similar advocacy and
networking role vis-à-vis program managers and leaders of other NGOs. Regional
networks of NGOs which are now being established in Asia and Africa to promote SouthSouth activities at both the national and regional levels may indeed complement and, in
many ways, strengthen the work done by national governments as well as PPD.
2. The member countries must devote more of their own financial and technical resources to
South-South Cooperation. In recent years, the economic crises facing several of the
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member countries since the ICPD have reduced or limited their capacity to do as much as
they wanted to do in this area. But as these countries begin to emerge from the crisis, they
should consider giving South-South Cooperation the priority it truly deserves in the
allocation of domestic resources. On the other side of the equation, there are several
member countries which now have the financial means to contribute much more than in
the past to South-South Cooperation.
3. In 1995, PPD’s mission was defined in its by-laws as follows: to expand and improve
South-South collaboration in the fields of family planning and reproductive health; to
strengthen institutional capacity to undertake South-South exchange activities and to
rapidly expand the number of South-South training and consultative programs, with
particular emphasis on long-term collaborative arrangements; and to provide through
PPD’s Secretariat a central point for networking among Partners and for identifying
opportunities for South-South exchanges and sources of financial support. These tasks
remain as valid today as they were in 1995. However, PPD’s future strategy will focus on
establishing specific priorities within each of the program areas, taking into account the
experiences gained and the lessons learned in the past ten to twelve years. PPD will also
look to develop global conceptual frameworks for its own contribution to capacity
building, research and exchange of information - the three major modalities for SouthSouth Cooperation.
4. The time has come to broaden the scope of training and research programs conducted
nationally so as to include not only in-country experiences but also relevant experiences
and lessons learned from other developing countries. A truly global approach in
formulating the content and framework of the training programs will enable participants
from a much larger number of countries to benefit from such programs, though special
activities focusing on the needs and requirements of individual countries will continue to
be a priority. Institutions in developing countries that have the capacity to organize short
and medium term training suited to the needs and requirements of officials and program
managers from other countries should be identified. Technical and financial assistance to
enable them to strengthen their curriculum and faculty should be a continuing priority for
PPD as for other agencies involved in promoting South-South Cooperation.
39
5. In the area of research, the focus should be on promoting inter-country collaborative
efforts among research and academic institutions on those topics and themes that have
been identified through consultations between researchers and policy makers as being
relevant to the operational priorities of South-South co-operation.
6. In the area of exchange of information, the objective should be to bring to the attention of
policy makers, program managers and others concerned relevant experiences and lessons
learned on a continuing basis using both print and electronic media.
7. Many of the member countries also expect the PPD Secretariat to help raise funds for
their regular programs. The experience so far indicates that the Secretariat, given a rather
small staff, can be of limited assistance in this regard. Members of the Secretariat may
help best by facilitating contacts between potential donors and program countries and
recommending qualified consultants. PPD should also work closely with UNFPA country
support teams in this regard
8. Donors should consider including South-South programming in their country aid
packages, in line with the recommendations adopted by the General Assembly special
session. UNFPA is already encouraging its country representatives to do this. It is to be
assumed, in this context, that countries will request the inclusion of such components as
appropriate.
Donors should consider increasing the use of consultants and experts from the South in
the project planning stage. Joint consultations between experts from both donor and
program countries could also strengthen the implementation of such activities.
9. Continuing international support for Partners in Population and Development as the
major South-South initiative (as urged by the 1999 special session of UN General
Assembly) is also needed, with the understanding that the member countries will
demonstrate their commitment by increasing their own contributions to the core budget of
PPD.
In the end, sustained political commitment, strong advocacy, pro-active networking and wellprepared and properly implemented research, training and information exchange programs can
become the key elements of an increasingly successful and effective South-South Cooperation.
While developing countries that are committed to South-South Cooperation must provide the
bulk of the resources required, major donor countries have a key complementary role to play.
40
The international community should provide both financial and technical support to innovative
international and regional efforts in the area of South-South Cooperation and to third country
programs that bring together
two or more developing countries to work on collaborative
projects.
10. Milestones in PPD’s Endeavors
1994
Dr. Haryono Suyono, Minister for Population in Indonesia, at a press conference
announces the formation of PPD
1995
The First Board Meeting of PPD held in Harare, Zimbabwe, a board is constituted.
The board unanimously decides to locate its Permanent Secretariat in Dhaka,
Bangladesh
1996
The Permanent Secretariat is established in Dhaka
The board agrees on annual membership contribution to PPD fixed at US$ 20,000
1997
Prof. Nabiha Gueddena, together with Minister Salauddin Yusuf from Bangladesh
formally inaugurates the Permanent Secretariat in Dhaka
1998
The first strategic framework of PPD is developed for promoting South-South
Cooperation
PPD’s fellowship program is approved as an innovative modality for accelerated
capacity development of professionals from member countries
An NGO Forum with participation of more than 100 NGO representatives meets in
parallel sessions to the Board Meeting
1999
PPD develops its first communications strategy
2000
PPD launches its Global Leadership Program which improves the leadership
capacity of 892 professionals from 81 developing countries
PPD adopts a statement on Accelerated Access to Reproductive Health Care and
Essential Commodities at its Sixth Board Meeting in Beijing
PPD develops and adopts its first five year Strategic Plan
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2001
PPD emerges as an autonomous organization separate from UNFPA Administration
KOCHI Declaration. At a technical consultation in Kochi, India, PPD adopts a five
year action plan for improved access to high quality and affordable Reproductive
Health Commodities
PPD establishes the Visionary Leadership Program
2002
The UN General Assembly confers Permanent Observer Status to PPD with
support from over 100 countries and agencies
2003
PPD’s liaison office in the United Nations is established in New York
The Government of Bangladesh accords Diplomatic status to PPD Secretariat
2004
PPD develops a 10 year Strategic Plan
PPD observes South-South Day and its 10th anniversary in Wuhan China
2005
PPD starts networking with generic drug manufacturers in a meeting with the leading
manufacturers, held in India
PPD undertakes a study on experiences and lessons learned from South-South
Cooperation implementation process including 16 capacity development initiatives in
5 selected countries
2006
PPD opens a program office in Taicang, China, PPD and the Government of China
sign a MoU in the areas of capacity building, sharing of expertise, attaining
commodity security and supply and technology transfer
Workshop for Senior Officials on Capacity Building in Program Management on
Population and Development, Beijing, China
2007
PPD opens a Regional Office in Kampala, Uganda
PPD Africa Regional Office develops its five year Strategic Plan
International Forum on “Universal Access to Reproductive Health for the Attainment
of ICPD Goals and MDGs”, Rabat, Morocco
Rabat Declaration is adopted
2008
PPD Secretariat develops a four year Strategic Business Plan
PPD organizes the first International Forum in line with the 15th Anniversary of the
42
adoption of ICPD to assess the progress in its implementation, Kampala, Uganda
Kampala Declaration adopted
2009
PPD celebrates its 15th Anniversary
Bangladesh donates land for PPD
PPD launches a Policy Dialogue among Parliamentarians and policy makers from
Africa and Arab world
5thAsia Pacific Conference on Reproductive and Sexual Health and Rights, Beijing,
China
2010
PPD publishes the Midterm Review Report of its Strategic Business Plan (20082011)
PPD organizes International Conference on Promoting Family Planning and Maternal
Health for Poverty Alleviation, Yogyakarta, Indonesia
Yogyakarta Declaration adopted
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Chapter 6: Tunisia-Niger Family Planning Initiative; An example of SouthSouth Cooperation
Since its creation in the 1970s, the Tunisian Board of Family Planning has been working to promote
social welfare and ensure reproductive health for all citizens. Over the years, the success of the population
and reproductive health program brought national and international recognition to the institution. Over the
past 30 years, over 1,600 international candidates have been trained in the fields of contraceptive
technology, communication for reproductive health and family planning, management of reproductive
health programs and research.
Niger has one of the highest population growth rates in the world, around 3.6 per cent, coupled with a
fertility index of 8 children per woman. If this rate is maintained, the number of inhabitants will rise to
more than 50 million by 2050. Health indicators are a cause for concern: the infant mortality rate is 159
per 1,000 births, maternal mortality in 2000 was 590 per 100,000 live births and about 50 per cent of the
children were under‐nourished. Faced with these challenges, Niger was in search of a model that was
relevant to the local context and that could address the need for quality and regular reproductive health
services for the population. The Tunisian model for reproductive health and family planning was
identified as easily transferable and adaptable to the Nigerien context.
The Tunisia‐Niger Family Planning Initiative had eight specific objectives:

to ensure reproductive health and family planning services for 80 per cent of the population of
Kollo Province in Niger;

to increase contraceptive prevalence from 1.5 to 10 per cent;

to increase complete prenatal visits from 10 to 40 per cent;

to increase medical birth delivery from 5 to 10 per cent;

to protect 70 per cent of children 0 to 11 months of age through full vaccination coverage;

to train 100 traditional midwives;

to ensure that 100 per cent of the health centers could provide urgent obstetrical services; and

to prevent sexually transmitted infections, including HIV, and AIDS.
The project strategy is centered on the transfer and adaptation of operational mechanisms that had proved
to be efficient in Tunisia. In particular, it was the experience of addressing similar problems within a
similar social, cultural and religious context that made the Tunisian model relevant for Niger.
43
Activities under the project included health services such as antenatal and post‐natal visits, vaccination of
children 0‐11 months of age, health care and sensitization of pregnant women and women of reproductive
age, growth surveillance for children 0‐11 months old, contraception prescription, treatment of sexually
treated infections and HIV prevention, medically assisted birth delivery, advocacy and sensitization
activities.
Sustainability and innovation by the project were observed in three key areas:

Education/awareness: The initiative had a strong communications aspect. Through daily sessions
with the population, strong emphasis was put on gender, school enrolment of young girls, late
marriage, men’s responsibilities, family size and poverty, and Islam and family planning.
 Leadership building: The initiative succeeded in developing leadership commitment for
reproductive health/family planning. Within the Ministries of Health and of Population and
Social Affairs, a group of senior managers worked on enhancing commitment among political
and community leaders.

Community involvement: The communities were involved from the early stages of the project
design. Many meetings were held with religious leaders, heads of villages and NGOs. Local
leaders were involved in the debate on Islam and family planning and provided strong support to
the initiative.
Overall, the project demonstrated the benefits of using a South‐South collaboration model to address a
culturally sensitive development topic such as family planning.
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Chapter 7.Way Forward: South-South Cooperation
Developing countries account for a major proportion of the people in the world, and in
the current financial crisis many economists are looking to these developing countries
as catalysts for growth in the world’s economy. As the South unites into a single mass,
they can voice their opinions and concerns as a large economic, moral, political and
social force (Doha, 2005).In this scenario, SSC is well placed to play a pivotal role in
the arena of development.
South-South Cooperation is characterized by the principle of “non-interference in internal
affairs”. Development assistance committee donors, by contrast, have a tradition of applying
conditionality to loans and grants. Both approaches have been criticized from different
perspectives: the former for disregarding key social and environmental standards and
perspectives beyond the governmental sphere; and the latter for overriding national democratic
ownership and priorities by imposing conditions. The final version of the Accra Agenda for
Action (AAA) recognizes the noninterference principle in the context of South-South
cooperation. As a follow-up, there is a need to agree on what the principle of non-interference
means in practice and how it relates to widely agreed-upon social and environmental standards
and aid effectiveness principles.
The lack of adequate implementation, systematic follow-up and institutional support has been
one of the shortfalls of South-South Cooperation. Many ambitious plans of action and promising
schemes and ideas remain largely on paper. One of the principal and continuing challenges for
the developing countries remains how to make such implementation effective. A regular global
overview/report on the state of South-South Cooperation would be an essential tool in the efforts
to monitor, energize and promote South-South Cooperation.
The countries in the global South need to have clear national policies and institutional frame
works so that South-South cooperation can operate effectively. This is of greater importance for
the countries that seek to benefit from South-South Cooperation. If South-South Cooperation is
to have greater impact, beneficiary countries should take leadership in the strategic use of SouthSouth Cooperation, identifying the development models, technical and technological initiatives
for which they would want to garner support. The countries in the global South that are seeking
45
to benefit from South-South Cooperation must conduct their due diligence and identify
appropriate South-South Cooperation initiatives that would strengthen their development and
poverty reduction plans. The beneficiary country should also allocate resources – manpower and
funds – that would enable them to gain maximum return on the cooperation. South-South
Cooperation offers a means for recipient countries to control the manner in which they receive
aid, but recipient countries must do their own due diligence and be drivers of the process. A
focus on demand-driven initiatives as described above will enhance ownership and result in
greater impact.
The beneficiary countries should plan for and review their South-South Cooperation initiatives at
the strategic level and not just at the operational level. Donor countries also need to reinforce this
by taking a stronger line when assessing needs and shaping programs from a strategic point of
view. On the beneficiary side, there should be a clear national policy and institutional
framework, allocation of budget and annual reviews. There should be clear expectations at the
outcome and impact levels, with targets on poverty reduction, gender equality and development.
Results should not be limited to short or medium term outputs at the project or program level.
South-South Cooperation should promote good practices of transparency and accountability
through systems which enhance accountability and transparency.
Nevertheless, there is no accountability and transparency in the absence of participation.
Involvement of other stakeholders is key to ensure transparency. Regular public disclosures of
programs, finances and human resources allocated to South-South Cooperation would enhance
transparency and accountability.
South-South Cooperation should no longer be allowed to be discriminated against, disregarded,
under-funded, or shut out from the necessary institutional support in international organizations.
Some recent developments, including the establishment of the UN Day for South-South
Cooperation and the outcomes of UNCTAD XI which assigned central importance to SouthSouth flows and exchanges, give reason to hope that the situation is changing for the better.
Over the last few years, greater attention has been paid to the benefits of South- South
Cooperation in general and for less developed countries (LDCs) in particular. Some developing
countries have become important markets, emerging as significant investors in or suppliers of
technology, producers of generic medicinal drugs, and providers of technical assistance and
financial aid to LDCs. Nevertheless, emerging developing countries should do more for LDCs
46
through the provision of investment, trade opportunities, technical cooperation and other relevant
resources in order to promote poverty reduction and foster sustainable development.
In particular, developing countries- especially China, India and Brazil-can make immense
contributions to the weakest members of the global community by gearing policy action in their
countries to the special needs of LDCs. By opening more of their markets to LDC exports,
cancelling their debts, investing in them over the long term and providing technology transfer
and technical assistance, these and other emerging developing countries could make the slogan
“trade not aid” a reality for many, if not all, LDCs.
There is no shortage of networks to identify best practices and development innovations on the
part of institutions in developing countries, but mechanisms that can effectively facilitate the
actual transfer of knowledge from one southern country to another are sorely needed.
The stage is set for SSC, but certain points should be kept in mind:

The need for a more central role for the South in international economic decision-making
is increasingly being recognized. The G20 Summit on Financial Markets and the World
Economy invited a number of southern leaders to participate in the summit on equal
basis. The international community has also begun to recognize that without the
contribution of southern countries, the spreading financial and economic crisis cannot be
reversed. However, the developing countries must ensure that this initial widening does
not lead to another, slightly larger, but still exclusive club.

A large number of southern countries are still struggling on the margins with enormous
development challenges. A challenge for the North, the South and the international
community is how to change that situation especially in this time of resource scarcity.

The full voices of developing countries, including that of the least developed countries
and other specially disadvantaged southern countries, must be heard. This is the most
pressing issue before the international community. It must remain a key task for SouthSouth Cooperation to ensure fundamental change in the global financial and economic
governance structure.

Best approaches to advance the interests of developing countries are critical. One
approach which has emerged is a region-by-region approach to articulate southern views.
These could then be synthesized through established mechanisms such as the G-77 and
47
China and negotiated into global positions. The strength of the larger group still needs to
be leveraged.
The demand driven growth currently being experienced by a number of southern
countries could help avert a widespread, prolonged and deep recession. This demand
driven growth - a matter of great importance for South-South Cooperation – could also
help the less advantaged developing countries to remain firmly on the development path.

An approach which brings practical initiatives together on a regional, inter-regional, or
more global basis, where appropriate, could multiply their development impact. There
should also be space to bring initiatives together on a triangular basis where collaboration
with the North could add critical elements to the South-South Cooperation initiative.

The input of the South can also be in the form of ideas and experiences. In the late 1990s,
East Asian countries, for example, learnt important lessons from the financial and
economic crisis that erupted in 1997. Many of these lessons concerned the centrality of
getting the balance right between the State and the market, including guarding against
excessive and too rapid deregulation and liberalization, especially in the financial sector.
Latin American and Sub-Saharan African countries also have lessons to offer on coping
with financial crises. Taken together, this represents a rich body of knowledge that the
South could contribute to global policy discussions surrounding the current crisis. This
knowledge could also be used to further South-South Cooperation.

In addition to broad economic and financial sector policy, several other sectors hold great
potential for South-South Cooperation. These include:
-
Mechanisms for promoting innovative approaches to social investments;
these could also facilitate the actual transfer of knowledge from one southern
country to another
-
Improving reproductive health, and promoting gender equality
-
Public-private partnerships, especially for more effective delivery of public
services as well as development of products for the poor
-
Technologies addressing climate change and disaster mitigation, including
biodiversity conservation, and
-
The cultural or creative economy
-
Climate change and disaster risk management.
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
Strengthening South-South communication, including media initiatives.
More innovative thinking on mechanisms for expanding South-South Cooperation is
urgently needed. Among other things, the concept of Triangular Cooperation needs to be
re-defined to embrace two parallel processes. First, triangular support should promote
Northern support for South-South Cooperation endeavors. A second approach should
focus on generating new partnerships between governments, the private sector and civil
society, especially in the context of poverty alleviation and the achievement of the
internationally agreed development goals, including the Millennium Development Goals.

In the context of all this new thinking, both within the UN system and outside, the
organizations working to establish and improve South-South Cooperation have a central
role to play in programming collaborative activities and promoting the dynamism needed
at this time. They have a vital role to play as a policy entrepreneur. They need to develop
ideas and guidelines for the expansion of South-South Cooperation at the global, regional
and country levels. In order to effectively discharge this responsibility, their capacity
needs to be appropriately strengthened.

The media has a major role to play in shaping, facilitating and promoting South-South
Cooperation. Basic communication infrastructure is now available in most countries of
the South. There are, therefore, great opportunities to establish networks at the working
and systems levels for direct linkages. These should be encouraged and facilitated both
by governments and the southern media.

Action along these lines could take the form of forging a NewGlobal Partnership
Compact for South-South Cooperation.

There has been meaningful South-South action on one aspect of global warming: climaterelated natural disasters. This is part of an effort to improve disaster preparedness that
began in the 1990s, and it has changed international policy significantly: disaster relief is
no longer seen as an ad hoc activity, but one that needs to be planned and incorporated
into programs for sustainable development. The approach requires South-South
Cooperation, for the efficacy of disaster relief is heavily dependent on the speed and
appropriateness of delivery. It emphasizes a proactive policy on informing, motivating
and involving people in allaspects of disaster risk reduction in their own communities.
49
It involves learning from past disasters to improve risk-reduction measures. The enabling
framework for this approach is provided by the 1994 Yokohama Strategy for a Safer
World, the International Strategy for Disaster Reduction launched by the General
Assembly and the Economic and Social Council as an inter-agency framework in 2000
(General Assembly resolution 54/219), and by the Hyogo Framework for Action 20052015: Building the Resilience of Nations and Communities to Disasters.
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Chapter 8.Conclusions
Countries in the global South, particularly those that will benefit from South-South Cooperation
are largely low income countries. This implies that if the rules of global South development
cooperation are not set out clearly, the beneficiary countries may begin to experience unequal
relationships and conditions that will not promote the initial aim of South-South Cooperation. It
is an accepted fact that throughout the global South, there is an enormous wealth of innovative,
successful and scalable development solutions. South-South Cooperation is a win-win situation
for the nations involved and it is not a mere add-on to the existing unbalanced development
efforts.
South-South Cooperation is a vital force in world economic developments today. India and
China, long considered net recipients of aid, are now emerging as net donors, focusing their aid
efforts on southern nations. South-South trade is growing at an estimated ten percent annually.
U.N. ex-Secretary-General Kofi Annan once noted that over 40% of developing country exports
are themselves headed to other developing countries. Some economists predict that economic
growth rates in southern countries will outpace those of the North for the next several years from five to eight percent a year, compared to 2-3% in the north.
This newfound economic power could alter the balance of political power as well. As they grow
less dependent upon northern markets for their economic well-being, southern states are
emerging with new power and a stronger voice in the international arena. Future agreements on
important international and multilateral issues in the areas of trade, environmental protection,
and human rights will require broader outreach to achieve true international consensus. Northern
nations, accustomed to leading on the international stage, will need to take into account Southern
priorities.
SSC promotes closer technical and economic cooperation among developing countries by
employing experts from the South, sharing best practices from the South, and helping to develop
a sense of ownership of the development process in the South. It also allows developing
countries to diversify and expand their development options and economic links and is a
powerful tool for building new partnerships, creating more democratic and equitable forms of
global interdependence and global governance.
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During its participation in South-South and Triangular Cooperation in developing countries, PPD
has accumulated experience that can be used to make South-South Cooperation even more
effective than it is today. PPD would recommend that the following principles should be adhered
to for more effective South-South and Triangular Cooperation among PPD Member Countries.
First, respect for the members:No cooperation should be conducted at the cost of sovereignty,
interest or dignity of any country. The opinions of both sides should be given equal weight when
setting up the framework for a project.
Second, be pragmatic: Attention should be paid in such cooperation to combine generally
accepted good practices with specific conditions of the member countries to arrive at a tailored
solution that meets actual needs. It is important to remember that a“ one-size-fits-all” approach
often results in solutions that are neither practical nor effective.
Third, step by step:Projects should start small and be scaled up, incorporatinglessons learned in
the next and broader iteration of the project. Bear in mind the proverb “More haste, less speed”.
Fourth, everyone should use their comparative advantage: They key to success of SouthSouth and Triangular Cooperation is to let each party do what they are best at. When developed
countries are involved in the Triangular Cooperation, their financial strength should be combined
with developing countries’ advantages in applicable technologies and their low cost of inputs.
Fifth, efficiency: PPD’s efforts to promote South-South and Triangular Cooperation should
make full use of existing cooperative mechanisms, such as the United Nations development
assistance mechanism, to avoid overlaps that waste resources as a result of setting up too many
new mechanisms.
In a world of ever-deepening globalization, developing countries should understand that helping
other developing countries is helping themselves. PPD is ready to take an active part in SouthSouth Cooperation and Triangular Cooperation, and make its contribution to international
cooperation to help give less developed countries a stake in their own development and a voice
in the international arena.
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